Leeds fraudster stole greater than one million from NHS and companies – while stringing three lovers together with a pack of lies
A sophisticated fraudster stole more than a million pounds from three NHS trusts, the Bank of Scotland, corporations, a friend and a lover.
Steven Day was a chartered accountant and financial advisor who defrauded people who entrusted him with their finances between 2012 and 2015.
He told a number of lies during his insult, including that he had cancer, his parents had died, and he was a widower – even though he was never married.
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Leeds Crown Court heard that he was using the stolen funds to fund a lavish lifestyle, including luxury cars, luxury vacations and a portfolio of residential properties in England and Scotland that he had also set up, and to pay for his elderly mother’s care.
At the time of his 2014 arrest, Day was in a relationship with two men who knew nothing of each other – one with whom he lived on Becca Lane, Aberford, Leeds, and the other with whom he lived in Warmanbie, Annan, Dumfries .
The 53-year-old scammer from Lincoln Court, Chapelford, Warrington was sentenced today (Thursday) to 11 years and five months in prison after pleading guilty of nine frauds and three thefts in February 2019.
Day, who had no convictions prior to this case, was banned from serving as the company’s managing director for nine years.
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Daily sacrifice
Prosecutor Craig Hassall QC said Day is a director of more than twenty companies but his primary advisory business is Entrusted Group Limited.
He stated: “In providing his particular type of ‘support’ to companies, the defendant often held a position on the company’s board of directors.
“He would then suggest that the company could realize financial savings by outsourcing payroll and financial management to its service company.
“Once engaged to provide these support services, the defendant systematically removed funds from the victim company and often used false information about bank transfers to create the impression that payments were being made to legitimate creditors, particularly HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC ).
“Once those mislabeled remittance funds were transferred to the accounts of one of the many companies he controlled, he would often remit the funds and pay for, and deliver, property, overseas travel, and maintenance to various properties that he had acquired during the period of the crime to pay his elderly mother. “
The defendant had levied VAT on invoices from companies that were not registered for this tax.
As a result, taxes of approximately £ 400,000 were levied which were then not paid to HMRC. The evidence has been forwarded to HMRC but has not yet been investigated.
- First crime victim – Entrusted Health Ltd and Shaping Health Ltd. In July 2010, Day founded two companies with two other people. He met one of the directors – Lynne Young – while working at the Sheffield Primary Care NHS Trust. Over a period of two and a half years he sent over £ 106,000 from these two companies’ accounts to his own accounts.
- Second crime victim – Resident of Asia House in Manchester city center. Asia House is a 90-unit building on Princess Street in Manchester city center. The defendant had an apartment in Asia House, a building of around 90 apartments on Princess Street, and used his connection to gain a position of trust as one of four directors of Asia House Management Company Ltd – the not-for-profit that manages the building on behalf of its residents. Over a period of two and a half years, he stole more than £ 230,000 from that company.
- Victim of a third crime – Avida Care Limited, Downton Homecare Ltd. and St. Vincent’s Homecare Ltd. Prosecutors said they had deposited more than £ 419,000 in their own accounts over a period of two and a half years.
- Victim of the fourth crime – Shaping Health International Ltd. The defendant became a co-owner in December 2011. Prosecutors said the defendant took responsibility for the company’s bank accounts and stole a minimum net amount of £ 413,963.82 for a period of nearly two years.
- Victims of Fixed, Sixth and Seventh Crime – Merseyside Commissioning Support Unit, South East Staffordshire and Seisdon Peninsula Clinical Commissioning Group, and Cheshire and Wirral Partnership Trust. The prosecutor said: “Between November 1, 2012 and January 14, 2013, when he was concurrently employed by two or three trusts, he claimed £ 49,942.90 from the Merseyside Commissioning Support Unit, and £ 40,824.00 from South East Staffordshire and Seisdon Peninsula CCG and he worked for Cheshire and Wirral Partnership Trust for two days at a cost of £ 2,280.93. Of the total £ 93,046.90, he received only £ 86,602.61 as managers refused to sign his last time sheets after his deception was discovered. ”“ Day actually attended his own business meetings instead of taking the full-time positions. He did not tell second and third NHS employers that he was already full-time with the NHS.
- Victims of the eighth and ninth crime – Lynne Young Associates. The prosecutor said Day stole an additional amount of more than £ 21,600 from Ms. Lynne, adding, “The defendant was an accountant for Lynne Young’s company, Lynne Young Associates Ltd, and was responsible for paying corporation tax and sales tax to HMRC. He received money from Lynne Young to pay tax liabilities, but only paid a small portion of the funds to HMRC and kept the rest to itself. “
- Victims of the Tenth and Eleventh Crime – Royal Bank of Scotland Plc. Day told the Royal Bank of Scotland lies about access to funds in accounts of Entrusted Health Ltd and Shaping Health International Ltd. to obtain. Prosecutors said the total loss was £ 93,223.52.
- Victim of the twelfth offense – lover. Day started an affair with an old work colleague after reconnecting on a professional networking website in 2014, claiming he had been widowed in recent years. In total, the defendant took from her £ 4,587.96. One day in September 2014, he asked her for a £ 360 loan to help him pay bailiffs in Manchester and then mentioned going to soup kitchens as he had no money. That same day he spent £ 86.90 at Crooked Billet, a restaurant in Tadcaster.
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Total loss and recovery procedures
The prosecutor’s forensic accountant said the total loss that could be calculated from Day’s crime was at least £ 1.5 million.
Day denied the loss he caused and continued to delay the case until a trial was held yesterday (Wednesday).
Judge Simon Batiste said the total loss that could be calculated from Day’s insult was at least £ 1,382,244.13.
Mr Hassall said, “Documents seized from the Defendant’s Manchester office in March 2014 linked the Defendant to an interest in another company, Variable Message Signs Ltd.
“This company initiated civil proceedings against the accused, which in 2015 was declared bankrupt.
“Bankruptcy is likely to hamper attempts to return money to the victims of these crimes.”
A seizure hearing is to take place at a later date.
Painful six year police investigation
Det Sgt Stuart Donohue of the Greater Manchester Police Department investigated the case for six years when Day used every trick in the book to avoid facing the music.
He said: “It is not clear where Day spent his illicit profits, but detectives know that he bought several properties in Scotland, vacationed in Dubai and just renovated a 45 acre property in Scotland, it is believed he has completely renovated another property in South Africa to rent it out as a holiday home.
“This has been the most arduous investigation of my career to date. Around 160 boxes of evidence from his estate and office, which are filled to the brim with folders, have been carefully examined by the team. And that doesn’t all include interview transcripts, digital files, and endless hours he spent spent tracking his movements.
“Day was a professional criminal. He built his life on fraud and theft. He was very meticulous in what he did and often moved money to and from so many accounts that it was difficult to tell which path he was taking. He.” did this to trip and confuse us, but we never doubted that we would expose the extent of his deception and greed.
“Every step of the way he lied and tried to find a way not to go to jail. It has and hasn’t caused numerous deliberate law enforcement delays that police and CPS have been tirelessly dealing with ready to fully accept his actions. ” But as with all crimes, it caught up with him today. “
